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Chapter 1106: Want to be Fast or Slow? [Bonus Chapter for Lord Meng UPcoo]
Haibara Ai hugged her arms, her expression a wry smile. "Putting poisonous spiders in a place like this, it seems Sansui Kichiemon is not only an eccentric person, but he's not exactly kind-hearted either."
Under these circumstances, she felt inexplicably relaxed.
In the world of Bounty Hunters, no one cared if she didn't know how to express herself or if she was unsociable, nor would anyone expect her to always smile and be friendly.
Because there were many people more eccentric than her.
And these people weren't like the Organization with a collective goal; they simply partnered up as they wished, or wandered alone as they pleased, choosing to be good people or bad people as they saw fit. Although there was the risk of being stabbed by a companion, she still felt that this gray area had an extraordinary charm.
Of course, it might also be the impact her Brother Hassashi had on her, making her think of Bounty Hunters and recall those silent nights when they packed Live Delivery together. That feeling of being surrounded by tranquility and freedom was something she still couldn't find anything else to replace.
Aside, Ayumi asked in a low voice, "Could this Older Sister be Kid?"
Genta muttered speechlessly, "Isn't Kid a man?"
"He could also disguise himself as a woman," Mitsuhiko reminded in a low voice.
Conan didn't say anything. He couldn't judge the identity of these three people yet. Even July could be Kid in disguise, and similarly, these three people could all be the murderer of the man outside. He still needed to observe more.
After the woman put away her dagger, she teased mischievously, "Children better be careful, there might be poisonous spiders over there!"
"Ah..."
Genta, Mitsuhiko, and Ayumi immediately moved away from the wall.
Haibara Ai: "..."
This wicked sense of humor, liking to scare people - it seems many Bounty Hunters have it?
Compared to Brother Hassashi and this woman, the burly man with a flat top actually seemed very honest.
The woman looked towards the burly man and Chi Feichei, smilingly asking, "Then, are we temporarily joining hands to act now? Should we go check the top floor?"
"Of course..."
Just as Genta opened his mouth, he was interrupted by a gentle, languid male voice.
"No, we should go to the bottom floor," Chi Feichei said.
Since everyone was here, they would follow the plan and take people downwards to meet Kuroba Kaito.
Then, they would push the plot forward. After Kuroba Kaito confirmed that the treasure couldn't be moved, and after Conan and these people proved that this woman was the 'poisonous rat' who committed murder, he would catch her and take her away.
"Eh?" Ayumi and Mitsuhiko looked towards Chi Feichei in doubt.
Conan's eyes lit up, and he also looked towards the black-robed man, asking for confirmation, "'The Niō's Nest is only a step away from the Sun'. It seemingly tells us to go to the top floor, which is closest to the sun, but the mechanism in this house requires going to a seemingly downwards place to go up, and vice versa. Then, the meaning of this phrase symbolizing high and low positions should also be interpreted in reverse, which means going to the bottom floor, the furthest from the sun, right?"
"I've already searched the top floor," the woman stroked her chin, "There really isn't any treasure, but..."
"I've also searched the first floor thoroughly and didn't find any treasure," the burly man looked at Chi Feichei, then looked towards the group of children speechlessly, "Moreover, didn't you say you weren't here to look for treasure?"
They even knew the treasure cipher, yet they said they weren't here for treasure hunting?
These days, even children this big would lie.
"We were just worried that Uncle would think we wanted to steal the treasure, so he wouldn't take us on an adventure!" Conan pretended to be a child with a naive appearance, trying to get by with cuteness and also to change the topic. "However, since Uncle didn't find the treasure on the first floor, what about below the first floor? In adventure novels, aren't underground chambers and such very common?"
The burly man perked up, "Underground level? Then there should be mechanisms or something..."
Chi Feichei went to the innermost part of the house, "Want to be fast or slow?"
"Wh-What's fast or slow?" Genta asked in doubt.
"To go to the underground level, if you want to be fast, follow me," Chi Feichei said. "If you want to be slow, go via the staircase mechanism, one floor at a time."
Mitsuhiko was stunned, "July, do you know how to get to the underground level?"
"Then you should have searched it?" the tall, thin woman said vigilantly, "Either you've already obtained the treasure, in which case your offer to take us downwards is with ulterior motives, or you haven't found the treasure either, but..."
"Alright, alright," the burly man said smilingly, smoothing things over, "Before we find the treasure, let's all speak nicely and not fight among ourselves."
Chi Feichei knew that the burly man was also hinting for him to explain. He walked to the side of the wooden ladder and, using a gentle fake voice, said, "'Multiple elders gathered in a prosperous place.' I already know what this sentence means, but afterwards... I lack some clues. Since everyone is gathered together, why not provide clues together and solve the problem first?"
If he was here for the treasure, it didn't matter whether he brought these two people or not. But he was here to catch people, and he absolutely had to make the tall, thin woman, the 'poisonous rat', follow him.
By saying this, he was also saying - because the second sentence matched, I can confirm that the place I found is correct, but I lack important things, so I have to bring you along. Let's solve it together, so don't suspect me of having ulterior motives.
Conan no longer hesitated and led the Junior Detective League towards Chi Feichei.
The three children had a good impression of July and felt very reassured. As for Haibara Ai, there was even no need to mention it; she stood beside the black-robed man without hesitation.
The burly man hesitated for a bit, then also followed.
The remaining 'poisonous rat' was unwilling to give up the clues Chi Feichei had already found, and even more unwilling to be left behind, so she also didn't say anything more.
Seeing that everyone was beside him, Chi Feichei reached out his right hand, which was wearing black leather gloves, and pulled the wooden ladder in front of him with force.
"Crack."
The floor beneath the feet of the group of people opened, but there was no staircase or other mechanism, it was completely suspended in the air.
The group of people who had lost their foothold fell downwards rapidly. Conan was scared and broke out in a cold sweat. Seeing that they were about to land, he quickly used his belt to launch a soccer ball.
The soccer ball landed first and quickly inflated, becoming a cushion that caught Conan and the other four people from the Junior Detective League.
"Ah!"
Only after landing on the soccer ball did Genta, Mitsuhiko, and Ayumi let out a long sigh of relief.
Haibara Ai also sat up on the soccer ball, which was like a cushion, waiting for the air to dissipate, and looked around.
Although the light was very dark, it was obvious that this was a narrow corridor, and it was indeed not the first floor.
Conan, on the other hand, paid attention to the three Bounty Hunters. These three people actually didn't use his soccer ball. After falling a certain distance, they either used hook claws, sleeve swords, or daggers to slow down their speed of descent, and then landed steadily.
Compared to them, who were completely unprepared, these three people were fully prepared, and their average skill and physical fitness were much stronger than theirs. They were more like Treasure Hunters.
That was repeatedly reminding him: Absolutely do not mention the corpse outside, and even less say that Doctor Agasa has already gone to report to the police! Otherwise, they would be in great danger!
The burly man retrieved his hook claw and looked around, "This is the Basement level, right? That was really fast delivery, but July, you should have warned us before. If the children fell down unprepared, they might have been killed by the fall."
"Originally, I planned to use my sleeve sword to pull them a bit," Chi Feichei said in a languid tone.
"Pity you didn't need to intervene," the tall, thin woman said, looking at the completely deflated soccer ball and the children who had stood up. "These children also have quite a lot of good stuff on them. I even suspect that there are already children joining the Treasure Hunters nowadays!"
Conan: "..."
Don't think like that, they are not Treasure Hunters, they are very harmless.
"Are we also considered Treasure Hunters?" Genta became excited.
Mitsuhiko smiled, "So cool!"
This, instead, caused the nerves of the two Treasure Hunters to relax a bit.
"Ah!" Ayumi, who had turned on her watch flashlight, let out a shout of surprise, saying with a crying tone, "It's all human bones here!"
The range illuminated by the flashlight beam of light was covered with a thick layer of dense white human bones.
Genta, Mitsuhiko, Haibara Ai, and Conan also turned on their watch flashlights, illuminating the surroundings.
Not only beside their feet, but also beneath their feet and along the entire corridor were jagged white human bones, among which some dilapidated clothes still remained. Some looked very new, while others were of ancient style and weathered to the point where their style was unrecognizable, indicating that these people did not die at the same time.
"So that's it," Conan sighed a bit, "This is 'Multiple elders gathered in a prosperous place', right? These people gathered here for the treasure, but could only turn into white human bones for various reasons, forever guarding this place..."
"Huh? Is this old person also a Treasure Hunter?" Genta saw a short figure of an old person lying beside the wall and ran over, "He couldn't have already..."
"Wait!" Chi Feichei let out an urgent shout using his fake voice.
Conan's eyelid twitched, and he also shouted, "Genta, come over!"
July is so anxious, which indicates that this person was not within his expectations. And July had obviously come over to the lower level before and searched it, which is to say, July did not see this old person when he searched!
"Ah!"
Genta originally thought the old person was already dead. When he ran in front of the old person, he found the old person looking up at him, and was scared, retreating backwards and falling to the ground.
"I'm not an old grandpa, but an old grandmother," the old person sitting against the wall side had silver-white hair and a face full of age spots. Her speaking voice was also incredibly old. She reached out and stretched, "Ah... I slept so soundly!"
"Oh?" the tall, thin woman stepped forward, "Now, not only children, but even old grandmothers like that are our opponents?"
Conan: "..."
Can you please ignore them, this group of harmless children?
"Grandmother, you're also a Treasure Hunter, right?" the burly man asked vigilantly.
Even July was nervous just now, this old person is definitely not ordinary.
"I'm not here for Treasure Hunting, just to sweep the tomb," the old person stood up, her back hunched, and looked towards the end, "That Sansui Kichiemon's tomb..."
The group of people decided to go check the tombstone. Just then, the tall, thin woman suddenly tripped over a skull beneath her feet and fell to one side.
Chi Feichei and the burly man stopped walking almost simultaneously, avoiding the woman, and watched the woman fall among the white bones.
Haibara Ai: "..."
What teamwork!
"Uh, are you okay?" the burly man reached out towards the woman.
"I'm fine," the woman reached out and grabbed the burly man, stood up, bent down and rubbed her ankle, looking annoyed, "How unlucky!"
"Just be careful when you walk," the burly man said smilingly.
"Conan," Mitsuhiko, who was walking at the very front, illuminated the tombstone with his flashlight, "Come and look quickly, there are characters on the tombstone!"
On the stone tombstone, a line of Chinese characters was carved:
[Lost ones, Offer the Amazing Tool to me - Sansui Kichiemon]
Bonus Chapter for Lord Meng UPcoo!
(End of Chapter)
Haibara Ai hugged her arms, her expression a wry smile. "Putting poisonous spiders in a place like this, it seems Sansui Kichiemon is not only an eccentric person, but he's not exactly kind-hearted either."
Under these circumstances, she felt inexplicably relaxed.
In the world of Bounty Hunters, no one cared if she didn't know how to express herself or if she was unsociable, nor would anyone expect her to always smile and be friendly.
Because there were many people more eccentric than her.
And these people weren't like the Organization with a collective goal; they simply partnered up as they wished, or wandered alone as they pleased, choosing to be good people or bad people as they saw fit. Although there was the risk of being stabbed by a companion, she still felt that this gray area had an extraordinary charm.
Of course, it might also be the impact her Brother Hassashi had on her, making her think of Bounty Hunters and recall those silent nights when they packed Live Delivery together. That feeling of being surrounded by tranquility and freedom was something she still couldn't find anything else to replace.
Aside, Ayumi asked in a low voice, "Could this Older Sister be Kid?"
Genta muttered speechlessly, "Isn't Kid a man?"
"He could also disguise himself as a woman," Mitsuhiko reminded in a low voice.
Conan didn't say anything. He couldn't judge the identity of these three people yet. Even July could be Kid in disguise, and similarly, these three people could all be the murderer of the man outside. He still needed to observe more.
After the woman put away her dagger, she teased mischievously, "Children better be careful, there might be poisonous spiders over there!"
"Ah..."
Genta, Mitsuhiko, and Ayumi immediately moved away from the wall.
Haibara Ai: "..."
This wicked sense of humor, liking to scare people - it seems many Bounty Hunters have it?
Compared to Brother Hassashi and this woman, the burly man with a flat top actually seemed very honest.
The woman looked towards the burly man and Chi Feichei, smilingly asking, "Then, are we temporarily joining hands to act now? Should we go check the top floor?"
"Of course..."
Just as Genta opened his mouth, he was interrupted by a gentle, languid male voice.
"No, we should go to the bottom floor," Chi Feichei said.
Since everyone was here, they would follow the plan and take people downwards to meet Kuroba Kaito.
Then, they would push the plot forward. After Kuroba Kaito confirmed that the treasure couldn't be moved, and after Conan and these people proved that this woman was the 'poisonous rat' who committed murder, he would catch her and take her away.
"Eh?" Ayumi and Mitsuhiko looked towards Chi Feichei in doubt.
Conan's eyes lit up, and he also looked towards the black-robed man, asking for confirmation, "'The Niō's Nest is only a step away from the Sun'. It seemingly tells us to go to the top floor, which is closest to the sun, but the mechanism in this house requires going to a seemingly downwards place to go up, and vice versa. Then, the meaning of this phrase symbolizing high and low positions should also be interpreted in reverse, which means going to the bottom floor, the furthest from the sun, right?"
"I've already searched the top floor," the woman stroked her chin, "There really isn't any treasure, but..."
"I've also searched the first floor thoroughly and didn't find any treasure," the burly man looked at Chi Feichei, then looked towards the group of children speechlessly, "Moreover, didn't you say you weren't here to look for treasure?"
They even knew the treasure cipher, yet they said they weren't here for treasure hunting?
These days, even children this big would lie.
"We were just worried that Uncle would think we wanted to steal the treasure, so he wouldn't take us on an adventure!" Conan pretended to be a child with a naive appearance, trying to get by with cuteness and also to change the topic. "However, since Uncle didn't find the treasure on the first floor, what about below the first floor? In adventure novels, aren't underground chambers and such very common?"
The burly man perked up, "Underground level? Then there should be mechanisms or something..."
Chi Feichei went to the innermost part of the house, "Want to be fast or slow?"
"Wh-What's fast or slow?" Genta asked in doubt.
"To go to the underground level, if you want to be fast, follow me," Chi Feichei said. "If you want to be slow, go via the staircase mechanism, one floor at a time."
Mitsuhiko was stunned, "July, do you know how to get to the underground level?"
"Then you should have searched it?" the tall, thin woman said vigilantly, "Either you've already obtained the treasure, in which case your offer to take us downwards is with ulterior motives, or you haven't found the treasure either, but..."
"Alright, alright," the burly man said smilingly, smoothing things over, "Before we find the treasure, let's all speak nicely and not fight among ourselves."
Chi Feichei knew that the burly man was also hinting for him to explain. He walked to the side of the wooden ladder and, using a gentle fake voice, said, "'Multiple elders gathered in a prosperous place.' I already know what this sentence means, but afterwards... I lack some clues. Since everyone is gathered together, why not provide clues together and solve the problem first?"
If he was here for the treasure, it didn't matter whether he brought these two people or not. But he was here to catch people, and he absolutely had to make the tall, thin woman, the 'poisonous rat', follow him.
By saying this, he was also saying - because the second sentence matched, I can confirm that the place I found is correct, but I lack important things, so I have to bring you along. Let's solve it together, so don't suspect me of having ulterior motives.
Conan no longer hesitated and led the Junior Detective League towards Chi Feichei.
The three children had a good impression of July and felt very reassured. As for Haibara Ai, there was even no need to mention it; she stood beside the black-robed man without hesitation.
The burly man hesitated for a bit, then also followed.
The remaining 'poisonous rat' was unwilling to give up the clues Chi Feichei had already found, and even more unwilling to be left behind, so she also didn't say anything more.
Seeing that everyone was beside him, Chi Feichei reached out his right hand, which was wearing black leather gloves, and pulled the wooden ladder in front of him with force.
"Crack."
The floor beneath the feet of the group of people opened, but there was no staircase or other mechanism, it was completely suspended in the air.
The group of people who had lost their foothold fell downwards rapidly. Conan was scared and broke out in a cold sweat. Seeing that they were about to land, he quickly used his belt to launch a soccer ball.
The soccer ball landed first and quickly inflated, becoming a cushion that caught Conan and the other four people from the Junior Detective League.
"Ah!"
Only after landing on the soccer ball did Genta, Mitsuhiko, and Ayumi let out a long sigh of relief.
Haibara Ai also sat up on the soccer ball, which was like a cushion, waiting for the air to dissipate, and looked around.
Although the light was very dark, it was obvious that this was a narrow corridor, and it was indeed not the first floor.
Conan, on the other hand, paid attention to the three Bounty Hunters. These three people actually didn't use his soccer ball. After falling a certain distance, they either used hook claws, sleeve swords, or daggers to slow down their speed of descent, and then landed steadily.
Compared to them, who were completely unprepared, these three people were fully prepared, and their average skill and physical fitness were much stronger than theirs. They were more like Treasure Hunters.
That was repeatedly reminding him: Absolutely do not mention the corpse outside, and even less say that Doctor Agasa has already gone to report to the police! Otherwise, they would be in great danger!
The burly man retrieved his hook claw and looked around, "This is the Basement level, right? That was really fast delivery, but July, you should have warned us before. If the children fell down unprepared, they might have been killed by the fall."
"Originally, I planned to use my sleeve sword to pull them a bit," Chi Feichei said in a languid tone.
"Pity you didn't need to intervene," the tall, thin woman said, looking at the completely deflated soccer ball and the children who had stood up. "These children also have quite a lot of good stuff on them. I even suspect that there are already children joining the Treasure Hunters nowadays!"
Conan: "..."
Don't think like that, they are not Treasure Hunters, they are very harmless.
"Are we also considered Treasure Hunters?" Genta became excited.
Mitsuhiko smiled, "So cool!"
This, instead, caused the nerves of the two Treasure Hunters to relax a bit.
"Ah!" Ayumi, who had turned on her watch flashlight, let out a shout of surprise, saying with a crying tone, "It's all human bones here!"
The range illuminated by the flashlight beam of light was covered with a thick layer of dense white human bones.
Genta, Mitsuhiko, Haibara Ai, and Conan also turned on their watch flashlights, illuminating the surroundings.
Not only beside their feet, but also beneath their feet and along the entire corridor were jagged white human bones, among which some dilapidated clothes still remained. Some looked very new, while others were of ancient style and weathered to the point where their style was unrecognizable, indicating that these people did not die at the same time.
"So that's it," Conan sighed a bit, "This is 'Multiple elders gathered in a prosperous place', right? These people gathered here for the treasure, but could only turn into white human bones for various reasons, forever guarding this place..."
"Huh? Is this old person also a Treasure Hunter?" Genta saw a short figure of an old person lying beside the wall and ran over, "He couldn't have already..."
"Wait!" Chi Feichei let out an urgent shout using his fake voice.
Conan's eyelid twitched, and he also shouted, "Genta, come over!"
July is so anxious, which indicates that this person was not within his expectations. And July had obviously come over to the lower level before and searched it, which is to say, July did not see this old person when he searched!
"Ah!"
Genta originally thought the old person was already dead. When he ran in front of the old person, he found the old person looking up at him, and was scared, retreating backwards and falling to the ground.
"I'm not an old grandpa, but an old grandmother," the old person sitting against the wall side had silver-white hair and a face full of age spots. Her speaking voice was also incredibly old. She reached out and stretched, "Ah... I slept so soundly!"
"Oh?" the tall, thin woman stepped forward, "Now, not only children, but even old grandmothers like that are our opponents?"
Conan: "..."
Can you please ignore them, this group of harmless children?
"Grandmother, you're also a Treasure Hunter, right?" the burly man asked vigilantly.
Even July was nervous just now, this old person is definitely not ordinary.
"I'm not here for Treasure Hunting, just to sweep the tomb," the old person stood up, her back hunched, and looked towards the end, "That Sansui Kichiemon's tomb..."
The group of people decided to go check the tombstone. Just then, the tall, thin woman suddenly tripped over a skull beneath her feet and fell to one side.
Chi Feichei and the burly man stopped walking almost simultaneously, avoiding the woman, and watched the woman fall among the white bones.
Haibara Ai: "..."
What teamwork!
"Uh, are you okay?" the burly man reached out towards the woman.
"I'm fine," the woman reached out and grabbed the burly man, stood up, bent down and rubbed her ankle, looking annoyed, "How unlucky!"
"Just be careful when you walk," the burly man said smilingly.
"Conan," Mitsuhiko, who was walking at the very front, illuminated the tombstone with his flashlight, "Come and look quickly, there are characters on the tombstone!"
On the stone tombstone, a line of Chinese characters was carved:
[Lost ones, Offer the Amazing Tool to me - Sansui Kichiemon]
Bonus Chapter for Lord Meng UPcoo!
(End of Chapter)
